Chapter 41: The Incredibly Long-lived Mouse
"Luna Lovegood has given me the Ravenclaw list," Hermione asked curiously. "When did you become acquainted with her?"
"I don't know her. It's just that she and I have a mutual friend." Draco answered half-heartedly. He was still immersed in his own thoughts about Peter Pettigrew. "It's good to have it..."
"I'm screening those suspicious students according to your method." Hermione said with interest, flipping through the list. "Would you like to take a look and give me some additional thoughts?"
"Ah, very good, you did very well--" He held his chin, sat in his usual seat, and stared out the window in a daze.
He didn't even look at the lists or anything else, he just looked out the window!
"What's so good about this?" Hermione thought angrily, craning her neck to look outside. There was nothing but an empty field covered in snow!
"Draco, what have you been up to lately?" She put the parchment down with a thud, her lips pouting high, a hint of dissatisfaction on her face. "Why is it that after Christmas, you seem like a completely different person, always acting so absent-minded?"
It was early January, and the students who had returned to school seemed to have not yet recovered from the happy atmosphere of the Christmas vacation. They were dragging their arms and carrying their books into the Transfiguration classroom. When they heard her voice, they all stretched their heads to look towards the front row.
"Susan, don't go over there," Neville said with horror, holding back the Hufflepuff girl who wanted to "apply justice" over there. "They're probably going to quarrel again. They've been at odds since before Christmas... Look at Hermione's face! And look at the cold air emanating from Malfoy! Whoever goes over there now will die..."
"But what if Hermione gets bullied?" Susan said indignantly, "Why does that Malfoy always make her angry? It was the same thing in the last Herbology class. He pissed her off enough to make her my partner... And she even defended him before..."
"Oh, Hermione won't be bullied." Neville whispered in awe, "Although Malfoy is terrible, Hermione always wins... Usually she makes a face at him, and then he makes a face at everyone else except her... like me."
"Wow, Hermione is so amazing?" Susan's face showed a hint of excitement. She sat not far behind them, observing them stealthily, "She is worthy of being the leader of our Lockhart fan club..."
At this moment, the leader of the Lockhart fan club was staring at the boy's platinum hair with an unhappy look on his face, hoping to get an explanation from him.
"Nothing." Draco finally turned around to look at her, his expression somewhat innocent. "I have a question... I just can't figure it out yet."
"It's rare to see you looking so worried—although I hate to say this—you're more pleasing when you're expressionless." Hermione's expression softened, and she said in a worried tone, "What's the problem you're having trouble figuring out? Can you tell me? Maybe I can offer some advice and help you find a solution."
Draco sighed.
("Look, Malfoy is sighing." Neville said to Susan, who was craning her neck to look, "He must have been treated very badly by Hermione...")
"I'm afraid you can't help me." Draco glanced at her and found that the little girl's face quickly turned red, as if she was showing signs of anger. He hurriedly added in a low voice, "Unless you know of a way to allow one person to stay with another person silently, without anyone noticing or suspecting..."
("Ah, yes, Malfoy was explaining something to Hermione in a panic. He must have been at a loss for words and admitted his mistake!" Susan said happily.)
Hearing Draco explaining to her seriously, instead of his previous evasive attitude, Hermione calmed down and fell into thought.
"Invisibility cloak?" she asked amid the growing clamor. She remembered how Draco had taken her out of the Slytherin common room not long ago.
"No. It has nothing to do with the invisibility cloak," he said firmly. If Peter Pettigrew had simply been wearing an invisibility cloak, then things would be much simpler.
"Not Polyjuice Potion either?" she asked again.
"Not really," he said regretfully.
"Then I'm not sure." Hermione frowned, "But I think the situation you're describing is a bit like Thumbelina."
"Thumbelina? What's that?" Draco asked casually.
"It's a Muggle fairy tale. You can put Thumbelina in your pocket at any time and no one will find her." Hermione shrugged, a look of disapproval flashing on her face. "But I think the ending of the story is too cliché. Why does she have to marry the prince to live a good life after all the running around and working hard, and staying away from those terrible suitors? Can't she just be by herself?"
"Of course, she can do whatever she wants..." Draco agreed absentmindedly.
For some unknown reason, he was attracted by some details of this Muggle fairy tale.
Put it in your pocket so no one can find it? Draco felt as if a vague mist was slowly forming in his mind, ready to burst out.
Almost there. What on earth was it? He rested his chin on one hand and stared at Hermione, at her shiny, curly brown hair, as if trying to find the answer from her hair.
Hermione finished caring about her study partner and was about to turn her attention back to the parchment - since she couldn't think of any good ideas for him.
But she felt a little uncomfortable because he was always staring at her with that inquiring look.
She peeked at him through the gaps in his hair and found his grey eyes fixed on her without blinking.
"What's the matter?" she asked him, like a good-humoured cat hiding behind a curtain.
"Nothing," Draco said softly, staring into those brown eyes, his tone a little dazed.
"What are you thinking about now?" she asked him again, with a proud look and a slight smile on her face.
"Nothing." He was a little confused, his mind was empty. He didn't know whether it was because he was too tired from thinking about Peter Pettigrew's questions, or because her eyes were too bright with a smile at the moment.
The bell rang. Professor McGonagall didn't seem to appear yet, and a moment later, Harry and Ron rushed in, breathless.
"Oh, thank goodness Professor McGonagall hasn't come yet, otherwise we'd be in big trouble," Ron said thankfully.
As soon as he finished speaking, the tabby cat on the podium suddenly jumped down from the podium with a whoosh, and turned into Professor McGonagall the moment he landed.
"Wow, that's so cool," Ron said in amazement.
"Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Weasley. But I still need you to explain why you are late." Professor McGonagall said with a straight face.
"We misread the clock," Harry said, feeling a little ashamed.
"Perhaps I should turn you and Mr. Weasley into a watch, so you might be more punctual?" Professor McGonagall glared at them and waved her hand for them to find a seat.
Professor McGonagall was clearly still furious - especially when she saw Ron casually pull his pet rat out of his pocket and place it on the desk.
The listless mouse seemed to have aroused a little sympathy in Professor McGonagall, who strongly suspected that Ron was mistreating the poor animal.
She frowned and said, "I must remind you, Mr. Weasley, that transforming a mouse into a cup with a mouse tail, as you did last class, will not be acceptable. Please spend more time studying Transfiguration and stop torturing that mouse for no reason."
Ron glanced at Scabbers worriedly, then shrugged and nodded.
"Professor McGonagall is so amazing. I can never get enough of watching her transform into an Animagus." Hermione was excited to witness the entire process of Professor McGonagall's transformation. She whispered to Draco, "I heard that there are only seven registered Animagus in the wizarding world. She is really -"
"Yes, Animagus!" The fog in Draco's mind finally took shape, and he couldn't help but raise his voice, "Why didn't I think of it?"
The students around him looked at him blankly. Professor McGonagall on the stage also glared at him fiercely.
"Mr. Malfoy, what do you want to say?" Professor McGonagall's eyes were sharp and she looked offended.
"Nothing, Professor, I'm just amazed at your superb skills." Draco realized how rude he was. He came to his senses and praised her in the Malfoy family's unique smooth tone.
"Mr. Malfoy, if you had spent the time you spent flattering me on researching Transfiguration, perhaps you would have been the next successful Animagus." Professor McGonagall seemed to be in a better mood and did not pursue the matter any further.
Draco sat down and looked at the sleeping mouse not far away with great joy.
Since Rita Skeeter, the gossipy woman, can transform into a beetle and pry into other people's privacy, who can say for sure whether Peter Pettigrew is another unregistered Animagus?
Maybe—he was the sickly mouse?
"Are you okay?" Hermione asked curiously.
The boy suddenly became very happy, as elated as a cat that has caught the tip of its tail.
"It's never been better. In fact, I've made a major discovery." There was an unconcealable joy in Draco's tone.
"What?" she asked, puzzled.
"Shh..." The young man in front of her pressed his white fingers to his light-colored lips and blinked at her with his light gray eyes. "The time is not right yet, so I can't say more. I still need some evidence to prove my guess."
"So mysterious again." Hermione muttered softly and didn't ask any further questions - Professor McGonagall didn't like students whispering in her class.
Draco gave her a lazy smile and continued to stare at the mouse.
It wasn't that Draco was intentionally keeping Hermione a secret. He certainly couldn't voice his suspicions in Transfiguration class; who knew if the mouse's ears were working properly?
Moreover, bold assumptions needed careful verification. Not just anyone could become an Animagus; it required extremely advanced magical talent. And as far as Draco knew, Peter Pettigrew had never been a wizard of profound magical power.
He was cowardly and mediocre, and the most earth-shattering thing he had done in his life was to join the Dark Lord and betray Harry's parents. Transforming into an Animagus—forgive Draco's bluntness—was no simple task, nor was it a skill acquired simply by having the Dark Mark printed on your arm.
To become an Animagus, one must possess both Transfiguration and Potions talents. The preparations are complex and the steps are extremely complicated, with even the slightest error requiring the caster to start over from the beginning. This is the main reason why Animagus are so rare in the world.
Peter Pettigrew did not seem a wizard of such ability, and if someone had told him that Severus Snape was an Animagus, it would have sounded more believable.
However, when all other options are impossible, the remaining explanation, although bizarre, is very likely to be the truth.
After the Transfiguration class, Draco walked out of the classroom at a brisk pace, his eyes wandering among the crowded people in the corridor.
It didn't take him long to spot the Weasley twins. With their identical fiery red hair and tall, thin, and handsome looks, they always stood out in the crowd.
At this moment, the Weasley twins were excitedly talking to a boy named Lee Jordan about mutant spiders.
"Wait, George, Fred..." Draco caught up with them.
The twin brothers turned around and looked at him with interest, "Wow! Look who this is. What does the young master of the Malfoy family want from us? Is he here to buy our skipping candy?" Fred patted his shoulder affectionately.
"Of course." Draco held his head high with dignity. "This is a big order. We must find a quiet place to discuss it."
The Weasley twins looked at each other and knew that he was not here to buy candy for skipping classes, but had something else important to do.
They said a few more words to Lee Jordan, patted him on the shoulder, and followed Draco into an empty classroom.
"What's the matter?" They asked him in unison, sitting casually on the two desks in the front row of the classroom.
"I noticed that your brother Ron has a rat?" Draco didn't sit down. He leaned on the podium and looked at the two brothers.
"You mean the hairless, listless mouse—" Fred raised his eyebrows and asked with interest.
It's rare to see Malfoy, a young master from a wealthy family, being so interested in Ron's hairless mouse.
"Yeah, sounds like it's the one we have." George exchanged a malicious smile with his brother.
"We wanted to experiment with it—" Fred said with a grin.
"Too bad Ron never wanted to give it to us..." George said regretfully.
Don't underestimate the Weasley brothers' unison. If you think they don't care about anything, you are wrong!
Draco could see a subtle signal from their playful expressions: Ron loved the mouse very much. If Draco wanted to use the mouse for some dangerous experiment, Ron wouldn't agree, and neither would the other brothers.
They were on their brother's side. That was their underlying meaning, though it was expressed in a subtle, playful, nonchalant manner.
Draco was in no mood for playful banter. He was determined to get the rat. He interrupted them and asked bluntly, "I'd like to know how many years it's been in your house?"
The answer seemed to be on the horizon.
"Oh, it goes back to when we were little—" Fred said in a nostalgic tone.
"We were innocent kids back then—" George made an innocent expression.
Draco's mouth twitched.
Innocent? How could they say that?
Who blew off the toilet seats in the men's bathroom, prompting Filch to curse for hours in the corridor? Who stuffed fireworks into the mouths of salamanders, causing them to suddenly burst out of the Hogwarts fireplace, crackling and smoking, startling everyone? Who conjured up boils all over their bodies and frightened the female students? Not to mention their constant troublemaking in the Forbidden Forest, giving Hagrid a dog-chasing-rabbit scene every day...
If these two brothers could be considered innocent, then Draco Malfoy could be considered a little white flower.
"Mom bought it for Percy in the beginning. It's been 11 years now, right? Ron was only one year old then, and Mom said he was bitten by the mouse and started crying." Perhaps because Draco looked so serious and didn't seem to be joking, George finally became serious.
Draco quickly calculated the year in his head - it was 1981.
This was the year that Scabbers entered the Weasley family as a mouse. It was also the year that Harry's parents met with an unexpected accident, Peter Pettigrew died tragically, and Sirius was arrested and sent to Azkaban as a murderer.
Everything is connected.
Draco had long felt that Peter Pettigrew was as sneaky as a mouse.
But he really didn't expect that he would turn into an Animagus in the form of a mouse and hide in the Weasley family for 11 years!
"Don't you think 11 years is a bit too long for a mouse to live?" Draco asked the twins tentatively.
"Indeed," George agreed. "We thought the rat was a little odd, too—"
"Perhaps Percy and Ron feed it too many good things," said Fred disapprovingly.
Draco covered his face and sighed silently. The nerves of the entire Weasley family were as thick as the Whomping Willow in the school!
The mouse has lived for so long, but no one noticed that something was wrong?
In fact, this extremely long-lived mouse followed Ron to Hogwarts and lived with Harry under the same roof for nearly two years.
He is a Death Eater! Draco didn't dare to think deeply about how Harry had been living under the terrible shadow of death for the past two years.
If Peter Pettigrew wanted to kill Harry, it would be easy.
As long as he turned into a human, picked up the wand of any sleeping student, and cast the Dark Lord's most skilled "Avada Kedavra", Harry's life might be in danger.
"Excuse me for asking a favor. Could you steal the mouse and give it to me without anyone noticing?" Draco pondered for a moment and made a strange request to the two brothers.
"That's a strange request." George smiled and looked at Draco with a questioning look. "Why do you have to want Ron's rat? Just because it lives longer?"
"I mean no harm to Ron," Draco said hastily. "I could even buy him a new mouse, or an owl. It's just that I have some questions and things I'd like to research about this mouse itself."
"That's not enough. Give us a reason that can convince us." George said solemnly. A similar expression appeared on Fred's face.
"Okay." Draco took a deep breath. He knew that these two brothers were not easy to fool - he had to be honest with them.
"I suspect that rat is an Animagus. If you've seen the Marauder's Map, you should know who's next to Ron's name. That rat must be Peter Pettigrew." Draco's face was serious, and this expression made the two brothers realize that he was not joking.
"Are you sure? I mean... Peter Pettigrew is dead... isn't he? His murderer, Sirius Black, is still imprisoned in Azkaban." Fred began to speak incoherently. "Dad once mentioned this... Speaking of which, Black is still a distant relative of ours."
"But no one saw how he died. The largest piece of human tissue they found was his finger!" Draco said gravely. "I suppose the rat was also missing a toe."
"Having said that, we always thought Percy broke it accidentally." George's face turned pale.
"Think about it! Is there some basis for my suspicion?" Draco said impatiently. "Maybe I'm overthinking it. But it can't hurt to try, right? You don't want Ron to be in constant danger, sleeping in the same bed with a dead middle-aged man who turned into a rat?"
"Of course not." A rare look of worry appeared on Fred's face. "What do you want us to do?"
"Don't tell Ron. You all know how much he treasures that mouse. He won't believe it and will argue with you for a long time. The mouse will easily take the opportunity to escape." Draco said.
"I understand." "No problem." said the two brothers.
"Don't tell anyone about it. Find a suitable opportunity and pretend to steal the rat as a prank. An Animagus will have its own thoughts even if it turns into a rat. Don't reveal your true intentions to the rat and let it know what you suspect." Draco laid out his plan. "I'll prepare a special container to temporarily control it. Then, we'll hand it over to the professors for disposal. If the rat is okay, we'll still return it to Ron and treat it as a false alarm."
"Control it with a container? Is that possible?" George asked.
"There has been a similar precedent. A securing spell can be applied to the container to control the Animagus." Draco was extremely confident.
This was Hermione Granger's little trick. In her previous life, at the end of her fourth year, she had used this trick to control Rita Skeeter.
Very clever. Fifty points for Gryffindor. Draco smiled.
"Okay, count me in." Fred nodded.
"Me too," George said, frowning.